FBI Is Behind Mysterious Flights Over US Cities

New submitter kaizendojo sends a report from the Associated Press indicating the FBI has a small fleet of planes that fly across the U.S. carrying surveillance equipment. The planes are registered with fictitious companies to hide their association with the U.S. government. The FBI says they're only used for investigations that are "specific" and "ongoing," but they're often used without getting permission from a judge beforehand. "Some of the aircraft can also be equipped with technology that can identify thousands of people below through the cellphones they carry, even if they're not making a call or in public. Officials said that practice, which mimics cell towers and gets phones to reveal basic subscriber information, is rare." The AP identified at least 50 FBI-controlled planes, which have done over 100 flights since late April. The AP adds that they've seen the planes "orbiting large, enclosed buildings for extended periods where aerial photography would be less effective than electronic signals collection."

Comments

Don't worry about it!

[Anonymous Coward]

I'm sure Obama will stop this nonsense just as soon as he's President and Bush is out of office...

Confused

[Ziest]

Are you sure it's the FBI and not the Stasi? I'm having more and more trouble telling them apart.

Re:Confused

[evilrip]

The Stasi would get their pants in a wet bunch if they were around today :) USA has become a fascist state. These people they do not care about anything other than their own things. Damage to you and me is just the cost of doing business for them. REFORM IS NEEDED NOW! Didn't FBI come to life inspecting brothels? Perhaps they should go back to that or dismantle if there is no longer a demand for this.

POE OPE DOPE

[Impy the Impiuos Imp]

Yes, FBI and NSA, you only use it for good, as opposed to Putin, who uses it for evil. The goodness in your heart will prevent your panopticon from being misused to fall into dictatorship, even though nothing in human history gives you confidence in that theory, and the Founding Fathers, who barely freed themselves from a much less intrusive entity, took great care to prevent government from doing what you are doing now, because they knew the flaw in allowing government any power like that was indeed the purity of your heart and your promise not to abuse.

This is all Bush's fault!!!!

[nwaack]

It's too bad we couldn't elect a president that promises transparency and who will work to end these practices...

50 aircraft

[Tailhook]

That's a big fleet of planes. Just think, one "not secret" program inside one bureau of one branch of our Federal Government controls 50 aircraft, and we're not even allow to know what this operation is called, as they smother the whole thing under shell companies.

Isn't having a giant government great? Lets give them more money and see what they do with it.

From who?

[IamTheRealMike]

The planes are registered with fictitious companies to hide their association with the U.S. government.

Hide their association from who, exactly? Air traffic control? It's not like you can see who registered a plane from the ground.

This statement just screams "we are breaking the rules and don't want to get caught"

Re:And this is why

[SpankiMonki]

I'm just wondering, what do we think they are doing? Where I agree it looks bad, but do we have any real information about what they are doing and if the data, pictures or what have you being collected really is somehow a problem.

Right.

"The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized."

TFA notes that the FBI's surveillance is "generally" done without a judge's approval. The problem here is obvious.